


A Wolfeshead Christmas

by Squishmitten



Series: Wolfeshead Island [6]
Category: Holby City
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/F, Wolfeshead Island
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 16:57:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,675
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17145542
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Squishmitten/pseuds/Squishmitten
Summary: Christmas had come to Wolfeshead Island. It was their first Christmas together, and Serena and Bernie couldn’t be happier. Serena and Bernie decided they would create their own, new Christmas traditions together. Apparently those new traditions included… A chicken in the living room?





	A Wolfeshead Christmas

Christmas had come to Wolfeshead Island. It was their first Christmas together, and Serena and Bernie couldn’t be happier. 

 

Bernie had never been a particular fan of the festive season. As a child, she rarely had anything close to a traditional Christmas with her family. It seemed that most years her father was away, serving overseas. There were a fair number of occasions when her mother was away with him, and a young Berenice was farmed out to a couple of different second cousins of her parents. More than once, she had ended up staying at the school, alongside the other girls who couldn’t go home for various reasons. Her university and med school years hadn’t been much better, and there were a few years that saw a solitary Bernie, home alone in her student digs. 

As she grew older, Bernie was always front and centre in volunteering to cover shifts over the festive period. If she could help people either spend the days with their families when they were in the UK, or at least phone, Skype and FaceTime with them when abroad, she considered it a good Christmas. 

 

For many years Serena had thoroughly enjoyed Christmas. Her parents had been very traditional, and it always came with all the trimmings. Large tree, crackling fire in the hearth, carols on the radio, midnight Mass and an enormous turkey or goose for dinner. Serena’s mother had been an absolute stickler, and ran everything with almost military precision. The same festive ornaments went in the same place year in, year out. The meal would be on the table at one o’clock sharp. The Queen’s speech was always watched.

Once she had a family of her own, of course, it had been Serena’s turn. Whilst not as controlled, or controlling as her mother always had been, Serena had always endeavoured to do everything she could to give Elinor a wonderful Christmas every year. She pulled in as many favours as she needed, to get at the very _least_ half the day off. She shopped, wrapped, decorated and cooked around her busy hospital schedule. Hoped each year that Edward would attempt to _pretend_ to be sober until lunch was eaten. Was let down each year. Once they were divorced, Christmas became about sharing Elinor. And once Elinor decided Edward was the fun parent and Serena the enemy, Christmas generally became positively painful. 

It was only after her AAU and extended Holby family came together, that the festive season became truly enjoyable again for Serena. She would do her best to make sure that those with children got as much time off as possible, and Serena’s home became almost an open house. She cherished those times when Raf, Fletch and the Fletchlings, Morven and Arthur, Ric, Sacha and on one occasion, even Jac Naylor would take up Serena’s offers of hospitality. Those times made her house really feel like a proper home again at Christmas. 

Between losing Elinor and meeting Bernie? Well, Christmas might as well have not existed.

 

This year, their first together, Serena and Bernie decided they would create their own, new Christmas traditions. Apparently those new traditions included… A chicken in the living room?

 

“I’m very fond of Muriel, as you well know, my darling. I can happily accept that we no longer eat chicken because you can no longer stand the guilt, and that you feel turkey is just too similar. In fact, I thoroughly enjoyed our roast beef Christmas dinner. I do have to say though, that you are positively spoiling that bird, Bernie,” Serena sighed, snuggling into her wife’s side.

“She's not well, Serena. I, um, I didn't want to risk her making the rest of the girls ill.” Bernie was a little sheepish. 

“She has a cold, Bernie. A runny nose. Beak. Whatever. What happened to ‘Don't worry, Serena. I'll set her up a bed by the kitchen range. She won't be any trouble.’? The hearth rug will never be the same.” 

“I'm sure the rug will be perfectly fine, my love. That rug has been in this house for donkey's years. It survived house training Jason, so I think it will survive a bit of chicken poo. Besides, it holds a very special place in my heart, so one way or another, I'll get it through this encounter with Muriel.”

They looked at each other and smiled, both remembering the storm of nearly twelve months before, that had thrown them together, and the nights they had spent, laid in front of that fireplace, on that hearth rug. 

“Look at them both though, my sweet. Don't they look so cute?” appealed Bernie, waving a hand towards Jason and Muriel. 

Jason was stretched out on his front, and comfortably snuggled on Jason's back, apparently having decided his thick, soft fur was perfect roosting material, was Muriel. The feisty hen seemed to be loving this new arrangement, and Serena was beginning to fear they would never get the feathered menace back outside. As fond as she was of Muriel, she would rather not have to watch every step she took, for fear of treading in something unpleasant. 

Jason was happily gnawing away at the huge yak milk chew Serena had bought him for Christmas. He was wearing the magnificent new collar that Bernie had bought him. He had been spoilt more than either of the human residents of the Island. They had made the decision that, as they both had everything they needed, gift giving would be restricted to the exchange of one small present each. 

Serena had presented Bernie with the carefully wrapped gift of a photograph she had taken sometime during the summer. It showed Jason stretched out in the meadow by the barn, Muriel happily perched on his shoulders and both of them clearly enjoying the sunshine. Serena had had the photo enlarged and beautifully framed and Bernie absolutely loved it. 

Bernie's present to Serena confused her greatly, initially. She had peered into the gift bag, then looked at her wife, perplexed. She pulled out a pair of camouflage combat trousers, and held them up. Firstly, Serena had never worn or even considered wearing either camo or combats. Secondly, she could tell at a glance that they would be at least a size or two too small.

“Bernie, these look more like something you'd wear.”

Glancing at her wife for an explanation, she was merely greeted with a small smile, and a devilish twinkle. Suddenly, she understood. 

“Oh. Ooooh, I get it. Thank you so much, darling. I love them. I trust you'll be modelling them for me later on, my love? I certainly look forward to unwrapping my present again and again,” Serena purred. 

They had both been devastated when, a few weeks before, Bernie had somehow managed to tear the arse out of her and Serena's favourite pair of soft, well-worn combats. The damage had been so bad that even the two highly skilled surgeons had been unable to save them. This present would be the gift that just kept on giving. 

As far as they were concerned though, they had already got themselves the best present the month before. After the horrible weather in October had forced them apart for four long and lonely nights, Serena decided to take action. Four nights apart was wholly unacceptable, and couldn't be allowed to happen again. Between herself and Bernie, they had negotiated, persuaded and sweet-talked Sadie Scott into giving up her nomadic, locum lifestyle, and committing to a permanent role at the Logan Street practice. Asking Sadie to work exclusively with them felt like the only logical decision. She was always their locum of choice, the patients loved her, and Serena and Bernie thoroughly enjoyed her company. The last thing alone was a big bonus in a small town. Jason also adored Sadie, and the feeling was mutual, which was just as well, as she was staying at Serena's house until she sorted out accommodation. All this meant that not only could they offer more flexible opening hours at the surgery, but also that Serena and Bernie now spent fewer and fewer nights apart. 

 

It was in part thanks to Sadie, and partly due to where Christmas had fallen that year, but Serena and Bernie had a luxuriously long break from work. The weekend and Bank holidays, plus Sadie’s willingness to cover the odd days in between, meant they had a full week off. In exchange, Sadie had the New Year off, and planned to celebrate in style. 

After breaking the news to Bernie that they couldn’t spend the _entire_ week in bed, Serena came up with the idea that they would each pick some seasonal films, and alternate, watching one per evening over their Christmas break. Serena’s first choice, watched the night before, had been The Wizard of Oz. Whilst not strictly a Christmas themed film, she would forever associate it with the festive season as it had been a staple of the BBC’s Christmas schedule throughout her formative years. Bernie had grumbled a little at the thought of watching a musical, but as it turned out, she was as transfixed by the film as Serena. This was probably just as well, given Serena’s other two choices were picked using the same reasoning, and consisted of Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music! 

Serena came through from the kitchen, bearing a plate of warm, homemade mince pies, just as Bernie was getting her choice of film ready. They settled down, snuggled under a soft, fleece throw, and Bernie pressed play.

“Really, Bernie? Die Hard?” Serena sighed.

“What’s wrong with Die Hard? It’s a Christmas film. Far more so than The Wizard of Oz, I might add. We watched it every year, back in the Army,” said Bernie, slightly defensively.

“You didn’t see _enough_ terrorists and explosions already in Afghanistan? My goodness. Well, I only have one thing to say about this choice,” Serena said in a stern voice.

“What’s that?” Bernie was a little wary.

“Yippee-ki-yay, my darling. Yippee-ki-yay!”


End file.
